Camel milk

Camel's milk has supported Bedouin, nomad and pastoral cultures since the domestication of camels millennia ago. Herders may for periods survive solely on the milk when taking the camels on long distances to graze in desert and arid environments.

Camel dairy farming is an alternative to cow dairy farming in dry regions of the world where bovine farming consumes large amounts of water and electricity to power air-conditioned halls and cooling sprinkler systems. Camel farming, by utilising a native species well-adapted to arid regions, able to eat salty desert plants, has been linked to de-desertification by UNESCO. Camel milk can be found in supermarkets in the UAE, Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, and the United States.

Camel milk is a rich source of proteins with potential antimicrobial and protective activities; these proteins are not found in cow milk or found only in minor amount. Camel milk has enough nutrients to sustain a person through the day. In many countries, camel milk is given to babies suffering from malnutrition.

Compared to cow, buffalo and ewe milk fat, camel milk fat contains fewer short-chained fatty acids, but the same long-chained fatty acids can be found. Some researchers claim that the value of camel milk is to be found in the high concentrations of linoleic acid among other polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are essential for human nutrition. Camel milk has more fat and protein than cow's milk. Cholesterol in camel milk is lower than cow or goat milk.

Camel milk has a high vitamin and mineral content and immunoglobin content. Camel milk is three times higher in vitamin C than cow's milk and 10 times higher in iron. It is also high in unsaturated fatty acids and B vitamins but lower in vitamin A and B2 (than cow milk). The composition of camel milk depends on its feed and species: Bactrian milk has a higher fat content than dromedary milk.

Camel milk is lower in lactose than cow's milk. However, levels of potassium, magnesium, iron, copper, manganese, sodium and zinc are higher than in cow's milk.

Camel milk is still largely a subsistence product, but production in camel milk dairies is a growing industry.

Camel milk in India has been used by raika and other desert communities, it also finds its presence in the ancient Indian medicinal texts of Ayurveda. The National Research Centre on Camel in Bikaner, Rajasthan, India is a national camel research institute which has participated in research projects on the therapeutic values of camel milk in autism, diabetes, TB, hepatitis, etc. India's first camel milk microdairy project, was set up in 2016 by LPPS, an NGO working with Raika camel breeders. The Kumbhalgarh Camel Dairy, based at the LPPS Camel Conservation Centre at Sadri, near Rajasthan's famous Ranakpur Jain temples, produces pasteurised camel milk and cheese products.

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